Iowa Basketball: 2017-18 season preview for the Hawkeyes

Key Reserves:

Christian Williams:  The backup point guard should be the first player in off the bench. When he is in the game, he will always be the point guard which will push Bohannon to the off guard, which is where Bohannon will really thrive. Williams is a tall guard who has great ball handling skills. Williams has quick hands and is a guy who can create a lot of steals which will lead to early offense.   Williams should see an uptick in minutes this year with Peter Jok graduating.

Dom Uhl: Uhl is one of the few seniors on the team. He is a backup frontcourt player for coach Fran. Uhl is not a flashy guy and doesn’t score a lot. He does give quality minutes and can protect the rim.  One thing that Uhl will bring is leadership. Dom is going to be leaned on to guide the young kids and show them the ropes of a college basketball season. Sometimes, leadership is an invaluable trait to have.

Nicholas Baer: Baer is another player who fits the mold of defense-first. Baer was Iowa’s defensive player of the year and led the team in total blocked shots with 45. Baer, a former walk-on, also has a sneaky offensive game, and if you leave him open he can knock down shots. Baer can make threes, is a really good free throw shooter, and a great rebounder. Baer would best be described as a grinder; he gets all of the hustle stats and just all around loves the game of basketball.

Luka Garza: This incoming freshman may push Cordell Pemsl for minutes early, and eventually for his starting spot. Garza is a great shooter from deep. He can protect the rim and rebound as well. The 6’11” player is a much different player than Adam Woodbury, a previous Hawkeye. Garza is an elite scorer and rebounder. Garza averaged a double-double in the team’s tour of Europe this year.

Brady Ellingson: Much like Bohannon, Ellingson is the 3-point specialist when he is on the floor. He doesn’t bring a whole lot else to Iowa that they don’t already have on their roster. He hit 47% of his threes last year, which was a great number for the junior.